Freed Fused

[Trusk'our he/him]

Hypothetical scenario here. A single Heavenly One, upon the latest return from Braize has finally come to the conclusion that they cannot possibly stomach going into battle again. They're so worn after millennia of bloodshed that they've become broken inside.

They sweep down the the Valley on one of their patrols, seeking the Nightwatcher or even Cultivation herself to seek a boon. They ask to be taken from Odium's reach and allowed to live, but to live away from all the strife and death.

 

My question then is, can this be done? Honor was able to take the Heralds and remake their Surges that Odium had granted them, even using the process to further bind Odium's influence. Could Cultivation replace the Fused's Connection and Investiture in such a way that Odium couldn't directly take retribution upon them? 

Personally, I'm leaning toward the idea that it could be done.

[Schizoposting]

It probably depends on whether or not Fused are considered Spren, and are thus protected by the new Oathpact. If they aren't, then Retribution could just destroy them; if they are, then they don't even need to go to Cultivation, since they can already disobey Retribution without consequences. The only problem is that if they die, they won't get any new hosts, and will thus be stuck on Braize, where they can be tortured. Cultivation might be able to fix this, but it would require her to substantially invest in said Fused. 

[Frustration]

11 hours ago, Schizoposting said:

It probably depends on whether or not Fused are considered Spren, and are thus protected by the new Oathpact. If they aren't, then Retribution could just destroy them; if they are, then they don't even need to go to Cultivation, since they can already disobey Retribution without consequences. The only problem is that if they die, they won't get any new hosts, and will thus be stuck on Braize, where they can be tortured. Cultivation might be able to fix this, but it would require her to substantially invest in said Fused. 

While disobeying Odium is pretty easy, disobeying Retribution would definitely bring consequences.

Spoiler

Striker_EZ

Why didn't Odium take the Investiture away from the Fused that rebelled against him at the end of Rhythm of War? At the end of Oathbringer, Odium tells one Fused that questioned him that he could take "that which gave [the Fused] life." So why didn't he do that to Leshwi and the others?

Brandon Sanderson

This is actually an excellent question. Odium, in his previous incarnation-- we'll see how he acts now-- part of the driving force of Odium is this kind of belief, mistaken or otherwise, that Odium represents all emotion, and strength of emotion, and basically the Passions in lore. Rebelling against him in the way that they did is actually in line with Odium's personal directives. The Vessel may not like it, in fact the power may not like it, but at the same time, there's a part of both of them that acknowledges, this is what they set in motion, and this is an appropriate use of the agency of the agents they chose. And so, unilaterally destroying those who turn against him is actually not an Odium thing. It's more an Honor thing than it would be an Odium thing. It's just not in line with how Odium acts or thinks, even though it's possible and there's threats and... That's not saying Odium wouldn't do it. But acting like Honor is not something Odium would necessarily want to do.

YouTube Spoiler Stream 4 (June 16, 2022)

This is one of the ways that adding Honor makes things more dangerous.

 

[Nitpicking]

13 hours ago, Schizoposting said:

It probably depends on whether or not Fused are considered Spren, and are thus protected by the new Oathpact. If they aren't, then Retribution could just destroy them; if they are, then they don't even need to go to Cultivation, since they can already disobey Retribution without consequences. The only problem is that if they die, they won't get any new hosts, and will thus be stuck on Braize, where they can be tortured. Cultivation might be able to fix this, but it would require her to substantially invest in said Fused. 

The original question has to mean pre-Retribution, because Cultivation leaves Roshar when Retribution is created. The Nightwatcher still presumably exists, though.

[alder24]

On 1/26/2026 at 2:59 AM, Trusk'our said:

Hypothetical scenario here. A single Heavenly One, upon the latest return from Braize has finally come to the conclusion that they cannot possibly stomach going into battle again. They're so worn after millennia of bloodshed that they've become broken inside.

They sweep down the the Valley on one of their patrols, seeking the Nightwatcher or even Cultivation herself to seek a boon. They ask to be taken from Odium's reach and allowed to live, but to live away from all the strife and death.

 

My question then is, can this be done? Honor was able to take the Heralds and remake their Surges that Odium had granted them, even using the process to further bind Odium's influence. Could Cultivation replace the Fused's Connection and Investiture in such a way that Odium couldn't directly take retribution upon them? 

Personally, I'm leaning toward the idea that it could be done.

I don't think so, even if they willingly agree to place themselves under Cultivation's hands, replacing Connection tying them to Odium seems too much even for direct Cultivation's influence. Such an action would force Cultivation to fight directly with Odium over them and Odium holds his Fused firmly in his grip so he wouldn't allow this. Cultivation didn't change Dalinar's Connection to Odium, just gave him a little push to help him resist it in the future. However she might invest them and change the way they work as Cognitive Shadows so they wouldn't be reborn on Braize. But that seems like an action out of character for Cultivation, it's still too direct and I don't see any way for her to indirectly free them from Odium.

Mistborn spoilers:

Spoiler

This opinion is based on the fact that even though Kelsier became a CS showered in Preservation's investiture, his Connection to Ruin due to his past actions and Ruin's influence, was still levels of magnitude larger than his Connection to Preservation. Leras couldn't overwrite it and replace it with his power, it remained as it was. 

However, there already are free Fused at the end of WaT. Leshwi and a few other sided with Listeners at the end of RoW and were left alone by Retribution, moreover some other Fused stayed at the Shattered Plains with them after the events of WaT and Retribution seems to not only tolerate that but also allow them to do so. It's possible that Fused were given freedom to decide what to do after the war has ended, but I doubt they were given full freedom. 

[Nitpicking]

On 1/27/2026 at 9:05 AM, alder24 said:

However, there already are free Fused at the end of WaT. Leshwi and a few other sided with Listeners at the end of RoW and were left alone by Retribution, moreover some other Fused stayed at the Shattered Plains with them after the events of WaT and Retribution seems to not only tolerate that but also allow them to do so. It's possible that Fused were given freedom to decide what to do after the war has ended, but I doubt they were given full freedom. 

To me, the interesting question is, what happens when they die? Do they go to Braize, or just Beyond? If Braize, do they Return, or does Retribution have his servants torment them as the Heralds were tormented?